The Los Angeles Lakers earned an impressive victory over the Phoenix Suns on Friday night, coming back from down 22 in the first half to win with Austin Reaves and Anthony Davis leading the way.
Reaves had an exceptional all around game and made a bunch of big shots when the Lakers needed it, finishing with 26 points, four rebounds, eight assists, three steals and one block on 8-of-12 shooting and 5-of-7 from deep.
JJ Redick spoke before the season about how excited he was to coach Reaves, but even he has been surprised by just how good the 26-year-old is.
“We felt like there was a specific thing that we could do, that we could get good offense out of our action. He manipulated that really well, got us back in the game,” Redick said of Reaves. “The flow in the offense got back. He’s a guy that has thrust and a pace to his offensive game in the half court. I knew he was a great player before I took this job. I’ve been around him since July and every day he keeps getting better and better. I didn’t realize he was this good. I knew he was good, I didn’t realize he was this good. He’s a fantastic basketball player.”
The Lakers have been running more of their offense through Reaves as the primary point guard and it seems to be working so far through two games.
Reaves improved in each of his first three season with the Lakers and appears to be taking another leap in his fourth.
Austin Reaves believes strong start is key for Lakers
The Lakers are 2-0 for the first time since 2010, something Austin Reaves said before the season was a key for them in order to finish higher in the standings.
“Yeah, I feel like last couple of years we’ve been playing catch-up,” Reaves said after a recent practice. “We haven’t had strong first parts of the year. I think that’s a big component of having a good year — getting out on a good note and continuing that.
“Coming out on a high note. We have three games at home. Try to go win all of them. And then I think we’re an every-other-day road trip. The first one of the year. I think it’s tough to play catch-up in the NBA because it’s so fatiguing. Not just on your body but mentally. So I think an early good start would be good for us.”
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